Rob Ninkovich: Super Bowl wins don’t affect current roster

FOXBORO — Rob Ninkovich didn’t mince any words when it came to discussing the Patriots’ legacy of Super Bowl titles and how it affects the current roster.

“That whole era is over with. It’s gone,” said Ninkovich of the team that won Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII and XXXIX. “So this is a whole new team. It’s a different bunch of guys. We all have to experience it and learn for ourselves what it’s like. Getting in the Super Bowl last year and losing left a bad taste in my mouth.

“I would have liked to get back this year, but that wasn’t the way it happened. You take all the lessons in life and learn from them, and put your best foot forward the next year.”